August 2011

The IGSP and Center for Systems Biology Summer Fellows have spent the last two months attending weekly IGSP seminars and workshops, digging into hands-on research, and tackling some of the big questions in the genome sciences today. Now, they are ready to share what they've learned and discovered with the rest of the IGSP and Duke communities.

Here's a sneak peak at what just a few of these students have been up to:

-Zoe Hill has sequenced Chlamydia and Chlamydia mutants in Raphael Valdivia’s lab.

-Beryl Cummings has spent the summer exploring the genetic and epigenetic basis for the formation and function of centromeric heterochromatin with Kristin Scott.

-Emma Fridel has been mapping gene expression in the brains of doves under the mentorship of Erich Jarvis.

-Stephanie Joyner has explored the genes controlling fruit development and seed dispersal in Arabidopsis thaliana in Philip Benfey’s lab.

-Maian Lopian has been studying synthetic gene circuits in Lingchong You's lab.

-Michael Vogelsong has been examining cancer cell genetic responses to a variety of microenvironmental stresses in Ashley Chi’s lab.

To learn more about these projects and so many others, please join us at a poster session to be held on the third floor of the Fitzpatrick Atrium (FCIEMAS) on August 5th from 10 am to 12 pm.

It's sure to be an impressive showing, and we encourage you all to come out to support the students with your attendance and participation!

A Body Fit for a Freaky-Big Brain
In a special issue of Discover magazine, Carl Zimmer writes about Greg Wray's efforts to find the secret to our big brains in the human genome.

Hospitals, Researchers Excited to Take DNA Sequencing to New Levels
The Journal Sentinel reports that Duke University Medical Center began approaching families of babies with anatomical defects of unknown origin about sequencing them, according to Nicholas Katsanis who is leading a task force on neonatal genomics.

Duke Researcher Aims to Leverage Discoveries to Improve Biofuel, Food Crops
Genomeweb's Gene Silencing News reports on Philip Benfey's efforts to develop discoveries made in his lab for practical applications through the agricultural biotech firm GrassRoots Biotechnology.

Gene Patenting: The Big Fight
In the latest issue of Genome Technology magazine, Bob Cook-Deegan says he thinks that gene patents might serve as incentives for bringing products to market. "I think that might be true in diagnostics - that hasn't been true up till now, but it might be true in the future."

Taking a Developmental Perspective on Systems Biology
In Developmental Cell, Philip Benfey says that developmental biologists' understanding of how different cells contribute to organ function and how cellular components work together to produce phenotypes needs to be more widely applied to systems biology.

Professional Perspectives About Pharmacogenetic Testing and Managing Ancillary Findings
In Genetic Testing and Molecular Biomarkers, Susanne Haga and her team found that health professionals' interest in the use of PGx testing was limited by concerns about the lack of evidence of clinical utility and their ability to interpret and communicate ancillary disease risk information to patients.

Reinventing Heterochromatin in Budding Yeast: Sir2 and ORC Take Center Stage
In Eukaryotic Cell, Meleah Hickman and Laura Rusche discuss how the loss of important heterochromatin proteins in the budding yeast lineage presented an evolutionary opportunity for the development and diversification of alternative varieties of heterochromatin.

Open Chromatin Defined by DNaseI and FAIRE Identifies Regulatory Elements That Shape Cell-Type Identity
In Genome Research, Greg Crawford, Terry Furey and colleagues identify regulatory elements active in seven cell lines representative of diverse human cell types by using DNase-seq and FAIRE-seq to map "open chromatin."

Polymorphisms Associated With In Vitro Aspirin Resistance Are Not Associated With Clinical Outcomes in Patients With Coronary Artery Disease Who Report Regular Aspirin Use
In the American Heart Journal, Deepak Voora and colleagues report that patients with angiographically significant coronary artery disease regularly using aspirin and carrying SNPs associated with laboratory aspirin resistance were not at higher risk for death, heart attack, or stroke.

Characterization of Serum Proteins Associated with IL28B Genotype Among Patients With Chronic Hepatitis C
In PLoS One, Jeanette McCarthy, Arthur Moseley and colleagues present evidence that the IL28B polymorphism is associated with serum levels of corticosteroid binding globulin, a major transporter of cortisol.

The National Institutes of Health will fund research to uncover the interplay between genetic and environmental factors involved in substance use disorders.

The National Science Foundation has launched a program to support the swift development and advancement of useful new technologies by providing funding, consulting, guidance, and networking to previous NSF awardees.

The National Human Genome Research Institute has announced new funding under its ethical, legal and social implications (ELSI) of genomic research program.

The National Institutes of Health will support research in systems developmental biology for understanding embryonic development and the ontogeny of structural birth defects.

The IGSP's Genome Sequencing & Analysis Core Resource has just received its first PacBio sequencer. They also have two brand new SOLiD 5500xl and Illumina HiSeq2000 machines. For more information and a virtual tour, go to genome.duke.edu.